7/19/99
I drove up to Carrie's house at 6:20pm, unloaded my
car and rang the door bell. Carrie greeted me with her little 10 month
old baby in tow, and lead me to the family room. I unpacked my box as
Carrie made last minute touches on snacks in the kitchen. When we both
finished, we sat down and caught up on life in the past 3 weeks, when we
last meet. It was great to see Carrie once more as I loved her hearty
laugh and warm smile. Soon her mom arrived with
Carrie's grand mother and sister. The baby was the star of the show for
the next 15 minutes as other friends arrived.
We sat and talked, laughed and listened to 4
generations of family stories. Then we turned off the lights, I lit a
few candles and made new friends. In the processes, I told all of them
how to enjoy burning candles and offered them beautiful lamps, candles
and holders at great prices. I offered all of them a job and the
privilege of earning candles for little cost by having friends over. We
ate snacks and took orders. I booked parties and helped Carrie shop with
a $198 shopping spree! As the evening came to an end, I packed up my box
and left for home. What a wonderful evening we all had.
As I drove home, I stopped to get gas. The poor man
working was fighting with a drunk that wanted more beer. His pay, most
likely about $6.50hr! Then I stopped at a drive through for a drink. The
man working in a hot kitchen makes about $7.00hr. What a bad job, having
to work late nights for that pay! The next day I asked the trash man
what he makes lifting nasty and smelly trash cans all day in the heat,
$8.46hr! At all of my temp jobs, I saw hard working men
trying to support a family with bad paying jobs! What would they have to
pay me to work most mans jobs? Cleaning septic tanks forget it!
Construction in the heat? No way! I made just under $200 in one fun
filled evening selling [company] and would have to work 30 hours at many
jobs to make that much! What man would not want to work [company] full
time?
Many men might not seem interested in love and
affection to you as we have stereotyped them. The fact is that men need
love and support as much as do the women. I took a temp job that was
going to hire me on full time after national conference. I needed a job
that I could count on to pay me each week so I could set a budget. When
I started the job they knew I had cancer and many doctors appointments.
As time went by, they became more interested in making money than my
well being. They let me go after 5 months of working for them. The job
loss has caused me a lot of grief leaving me short $1,000 from my
budget. This was a real job, you know, the one with a steady pay check.
On the other hand, [company] people have given me 110% support! My
[company] job is still with me through thick and thin. The [company]
people STILL are concerned with MY well being! What price can you place
on the love and kindness I get from my [company] family? Take the REAL
job, I'll stick with [company]!
Men in home sales? It sounds funny to [company] people
as we are mostly ladies. The fact is that men were the only people doing
direct home sales not long ago. Did you ever here of a lady doing a home
demo with a vacuum 25 years ago or a fuller brush lady? No! Men sold all
the things that came to our door. Women started to earn money and up
comes the Avon and home interiors etc... To this day, men are a huge
part of groups like Amway and RX drugs and
many of the others. You will not see many men in Mary Kay, after all,
not many men use makeup. I am told that [company] is all men in other
countries. However, our [company] literature and promotions are geared
to women only limiting the number of men interested in selling
[company]!
What is your dream in [company]? Is it to sell $500 a
month to keep your leader off your back or to make $250,000 a year? Most
of you join [company] dreaming of the big bucks, yet forget to treat
[company] like a job. What man wouldn't quit his day job and sell
[company] if he could make $250,000 a year? Every time people ask me why
a man would join [company], the first thing that I think is, " She
doesn't take her business very seriously" ! If you know that you
have a job and can make a lot of money by working hard then you
understand why men would do it! I don't think most men would keep there
job if your SRVP offered them a swap. I don't want to be trapped in a
job that has to approve my time off. That's my business and should be my
choice! What man likes that?
The main point I would like to make is this. You can
have it all with [company]! Take your business seriously and work it
like a job! When your leader tells you to do your 2+2 calls it is like
any other job, do it or you won't have a job! When you need more work
don't sit around and complain about it, get up and get to work! Many on
you work your [company] job in your SPARE TIME not PART TIME! With a
part time job you have set hours. If you want to work [company] part
time GREAT, SET HOURS and get to work! We all know that we never find
spare time to do anything till we are desperate, then we make time. With
this attitude, you are sponsoring other spare time consultants. Then you
wonder why they are not active each month. When you look at [company] as
the job it is, you too will be sponsoring men! It is all
how you look at it!
The men are coming! We see the business as a great job
with a lot to offer. If you don't see it as a career that will pay well,
you will not be sponsoring men. You have two choices to make.
1) You can take another look at why you joined [company] and start
working it like a job. When you do, you will be sponsoring men in. Just
think how many men have NOT been offered the opportunity. You all have a
region waiting to happen in your home town.
2) You can work [company] in your spare time and make a few bucks a
month. However, in a few years when you wonder why you haven't reached
your dreams, don't come running up to me at conference looking for help.
I will have a region of my own to tend to!
Men, women, short, tall we all are people in need of good jobs. This
year at national conference listen to the speakers. These leaders look
at [company] as a job. Find the keys you need to unlock your dreams.
Then go home and work at your dreams by simply doing the job you picked
for yourself! It's almost funny! Many of you wonder why a man would join
[company] when at the same time, with your business attitude; we wonder
why you joined!
I love you all and am looking forward to meeting many
of you soon. It is my hope that national conference will give many of
you the inspiration you need to build your business this year.
Best wishes, Hank
This post is written in love for a special STAR in the Stripes
among the Diamonds, Keep Shining ;)
This page last
updated July 06, 2005